A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on open access to electronic
commerce was signed by more that 100 companies, SME's, trade
associations and local authorities on 25 February 1998 in Brussels. The
agreement follows a European Commission initiative to ensure best
practice in the field of electronic commerce.

The MoU is the result of a year's worth of discussions within the
industry, which aimed to find agreement on practical solutions to
questions such as the interoperability of electronic commerce.

Five main areas are covered by the Guidelines:
* Developing an architecture for electronic commerce
* Standards for product information and marketing
* Exchanging legal binding documents
(in order to ensure users can trust electronic signatures and methods of
electronic payment)
* Rights and responsibilities
(issues such as data protection, copyright and the right to redress)
* Payment systems

(Based on Commission Press release IP/98/196 of 26 February 1998)

The MoU is not available on the Web yet. I will send the URL to the
list as soon as I have it.